Unisex name ★ peaked 1996

Iman

Meaning A unisex given name from Arabic Gender Unisex · 78% girls Rank 2025 #2,072 Trend → Stable

A unisex given name from Arabic.

Rank 2025
#2,072
among girls · ↑14 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
180
named Iman · +2% vs 2024
How common
1 in 17,662
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1996
209 babies
All-time total
6,609
#2,535 all-time among girls
First recorded
1972
in Social Security records

Iman popularity over time

6,609 babies have been named Iman since 1972, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.040.080.110.1518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s – – – – – –
1960s – – – – – –
1970s 92 95 187 19 – #3,223
1980s 481 134 615 62 +229% #1,858
1990s 1,395 241 1,636 164 +166% #1,043
2000s 1,555 232 1,787 179 +9% #1,158
2010s 1,040 336 1,376 138 -23% #1,749
2020s (to 2025) 561 447 1,008 168 +22% #1,859

Where Iman is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 91 0.06 outside top 500
2027 91 0.06 outside top 500
2028 90 0.06 outside top 500
2029 90 0.06 outside top 500
2030 90 0.06 outside top 500

Where Iman is most popular

Girls named Iman per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.056 per 1,000. Strongest in Minnesota, New York, and Illinois.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Iman born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Minnesota 32 0.297 +426%
New York 49 0.124 +120%
Illinois 23 0.100 +78%
Virginia 17 0.100 +77%
Maryland 10 0.094 +68%
Washington 11 0.076 +35%
California 52 0.062 +10%
New Jersey 10 0.055 ≈ national
Florida 20 0.047 -17%
Texas 37 0.046 -18%
Pennsylvania 10 0.042 -25%
Ohio 6 0.025 -55%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Georgia – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Carolina – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
Wisconsin – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Iman

Iman is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #2,072 in 2025 with 91 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1972, 6,609 American babies have been named Iman, about 78% girls and 22% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 1996, when 209 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1990s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Iman stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Iman?

The median living Iman is about 21 years old; half are between 10 and 30. An estimated 6,500 people named Iman are alive in the United States today.

median 21 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Iman year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 91 #2,072 89 #1,798
2024 92 #2,086 84 #1,895
2023 81 #2,278 61 #2,298
2022 109 #1,859 81 #1,925
2021 84 #2,219 82 #1,876
2020 104 #1,864 50 #2,565
2019 108 #1,868 66 #2,156
2018 85 #2,196 73 #2,003
2017 105 #1,922 40 #2,971
2016 106 #1,902 28 #3,819
2015 105 #1,924 28 #3,816
2014 112 #1,823 21 #4,602
2013 96 #2,025 27 #3,794
2012 98 #1,988 19 #4,926
2011 117 #1,749 13 #6,373
2010 108 #1,878 21 #4,581
2009 146 #1,551 13 #6,568
2008 164 #1,441 28 #3,773
2007 117 #1,817 18 #5,084
2006 156 #1,443 19 #4,754
2005 137 #1,514 18 #4,705
2004 173 #1,253 19 #4,483
2003 169 #1,246 31 #3,065
2002 157 #1,259 29 #3,137
2001 162 #1,239 22 #3,770
2000 174 #1,158 35 #2,643
1995 144 #1,194 25 #2,877
1990 96 #1,580 14 #4,061
1985 53 #2,028 14 #3,285
1980 36 #2,619 25 #2,136
1975 8 #6,733 5 #5,816
1970 – – – –
1965 – – – –
1960 – – – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Iman

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Iman Shumpert Iman Shumpert American basketball player and actor (born 1990) Contemporary
  2. 2 Iman Iman Somali-born American model and actress (born 1955) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Iman, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Iman?

The median living Iman is about 21 years old. Half of all living Imans are between 10 and 30 years old.

How many people named Iman are alive today?

An estimated 6,500 people named Iman are alive in the United States, based on 6,609 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Iman mean?

A unisex given name from Arabic.

How popular is the name Iman in 2025?

Iman ranked #2,072 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 91 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Iman?

6,609 babies have been named Iman in the United States since 1972, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Iman most popular?

Iman peaked in 1996, when 209 newborns received the name.

Is Iman a boy or girl name?

Iman is used for both: about 78% of babies named Iman have been girls and 22% boys.

Is the name Iman rising or falling?

Iman has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Iman become more popular?

Iman looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 90 girls named Iman in 2030, ranking outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Iman?

Well-known people named Iman include Iman Shumpert (basketball player), Iman (model).

Names like Iman

Names that sound and feel close to Iman: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Iman with similar names → More names starting with I →